Railway Corps

[Talerddig]

I wonder if anyone may be able to assist?

I am researching the work fo the Railway Corps during WW1 and have some large gaps in my knowledge, which I am finding difficult to research. Most reference to railway corps are from an engineering background or dealing with locomotives

1) How were people selected for railway duties. There appears to be many railwaymen ending up in the front line?

2) What training did the railway corps received that was not pertinent to their main role. By this I mean would they have gone through initial soldier 'squaddie' training before moving to somewhere like Longmoor for specialised training?

3) How much involvement did the UK troops have with the running of the railways behind the front line. Would they have been involved in troop trains, ammunition etc.?

Regards

Geraint

[Terry_Reeves]

Geraint

The Railway Operating Division, RE operated almost up to the front line. They provided men for the Tramway Companies, later renamed Foreway Companies; they also operated the Narrow , Standard and Broad Guage Locomotives. Apart from that, there were railway construction companies, railway signal units and wagon erecting companies amongst others.

Many of the men in the ROD were already railwaymen before the war as were men in the railway construction companies, such as platelayers who were skilled at laying the "plates" or railway tracks.

Men directly recruited from civilian life would have received basic military training, however, many men with the skills needed for the railways had already enlisted. In 1916 and 1917 there was a major expansion of transportation units and near the end of the 1916, authorisation was given to withdraw the men with the neccessary skills from front line units. Commanding Officers were called upon to submit lists of names of officers and men from 150 different trades and professions for the expansion of the transportation service. 60,000 names were submitted from which 11,000 were selected. At the end of 1917, the authorites calculated that out of 180,000 railway men who had enlisted, only 40, 000 were serving with transportation units.

The ROD transported passengers, operated leave trains, hospital trains and carried all manner of stores for the prosecution of the war.

Out of interest, ROD train crews ran services for Belgian State Ralways for a time in 1919.

Terry Reeves